Kyle Schwarber quickly shakes off rust to start for Cubs in World Series
CLEVELAND – The day before getting the call to join his Chicago Cubs teammates, Kyle Schwarber was in Mesa, Ariz., taking swings against would-be pitching prospects in the Arizona Fall League in front of a crowd of 909.
Fast forward to Progressive Field on Tuesday night – in his home state of Ohio – Schwarber was starting as the designated hitter in Game 1 of the World Series, hitting fifth against Cleveland Indians ace Corey Kluber.
“That’s what we live for,” Schwarber said, “especially since we’re in such a hostile environment here in Cleveland. I like to feed off that.”
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After six months of recovery from what was believed to be a season-ending knee injury in April to six at-bats in Arizona, Schwarber was on a private plane Monday evening and in the starting lineup on Tuesday.
“I watched a lot of video,” he said of his time away from the game. “I had a little history with Kluber; I faced him last year … Overall, you’ve just got to do your homework and make sure you’re confident going into the game.”
While in Arizona, Schwarber said he tracked about 1,300 pitches off a pitching machine – which some people have, in fact, compared to Kluber.
“I tried to set it to the nastiest setting that I could to where it would be a really sharp break just to train my eyes over again,” he said.
In his first at-bat, Schwarber struck out swinging on a nasty 3-2 sinker from Kluber. But that was hardly a travesty. The Indians right-hander recorded eight of his first nine outs on strikeouts – a World Series record.
His next time up, Schwarber drilled Kluber’s first pitch, 91-mph sinker, off the wall in right field for a double.
With that swing, he became the first position player in baseball history to have a hit in the postseason without getting one in the regular season.
Those hours of tracking pitches may have paid off in the seventh inning, when the Cubs had their best chance to get back into the game.
Looking to protect a 3-0 Indians lead in the top of the seventh and save Kluber for a possible start in Game 4, manager Terry Francona summoned bullpen ace Andrew Miller to face the lefty-swinging Schwarber.
Schwarber refused to chase a 3-2 slider, taking it for a walk.
“I don’t think we can write him off as somebody who’s rusty or isn’t ready to play,” Miller said. “It’s impressive. In a sense, it’s fun to see a guy work so hard and get rewarded.”
Schwarber’s lack of activity this season eventually showed up, but not in the batter’s box. One batter after advancing to second on a single, he was halfway to third on a fly ball that was caught in shallow center field. But Rajai Davis’ throw went to the plate and the runners were able to scurry safely back to their bases.
“There was a little miscommunication there,” Schwarber said, “but thankfully it worked out.”
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Although the Cubs never did score in a 6-0 loss, Schwarber said it was “definitely a positive day” for him at the plate.
Schwarber was one of the Cubs’ best players in last year’s postseason, hitting .333 with five home runs and eight RBI in nine games. But he tore ligaments in his knee in a collision with fellow outfielder Dexter Fowler on April 7, an injury that was supposed to put him out for the rest of the season.
Instead he kept working on getting himself back into shape, even though he never expected to be out on the field again until next spring. The knee, however, just kept getting stronger to the point where doctors allowed him to participate in AFL games.
“There was a lot of hard work that went into it,” he admitted.
After he passed that test – going 1-for-6 with a double in two games – he got the call to pack his bags and fly to Cleveland.
“I was just grateful for the opportunity to try to come back and do this. Now that I’m here, I don’t have anything to lose. I’ve just got to lay it all on the line.”
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